An injury riddled UFC 133 looked to still warrant it’s worth in cost Saturday Night, and in the end it succeeded, providing thrills, and great back and forth action.

The night’s main event was a rematch of one of the most infamous Draws in MMA history, as former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions squared off. Tito Ortiz (injury replacement for Phil Davis, who was an injury replacement for Jon Jones) only a month ago faced possible unemployment, and a couple of weeks later, was announced as the main event opponent for Rashad Evans. Ortiz and Evans have at times, been the most hated fighters in the sport, as both are outspoken…as displayed in the pre fight hype videos, where Tito lightened the mood with a “thats what she said” joke.

I’m sure the final comment endeared Tito to the Male 18-34 demographic (it worked on me), but could he defeat a fighter the caliber of Evans? Rashad, looking unimpressive against Rampage Jackson (wrestlebanging his way to victory), has had a 14 month layoff due to waiting around for his title shot, injuries, and other factors. For Ortiz, this was a great chance to prove himself as a contender once again. Rashad promised to finish Tito Ortiz (but he also sent Rampage Jackson a snuggie, saying he would “put him to sleep”, I’m still waiting on my snuggie, because that fight was a snoozefest).

No snoozefest in this main event however, as it was a back and forth war, with shots traded on the feet, and takedowns traded as well. Rashad showed off his superior speed by unleashing a sick combo on Tito against the cage, much of which was blocked by the veteran Ortiz. Tito secured a takedown early in the first round, and almost pulled off a guillotine choke in the second, only to have Evans pass his half-guard. Evans finally managed go get Tito down however, and blasted him with knees, punches and elbows to gain a TKO victory. Thankfully Tito fought his best fight since his 2008 title victory over Forrest Griffin, going aggressively, and not relying completely on his wrestling.

Rashad will now face the winner of Jon Jones/Rampage Jackson, which occurs next month. Tito Ortiz on the other hand, isn’t in danger of being cut from the UFC, as he took this fight on short notice, and earned a nice six-figure salary on top of that. After his win against Bader, and The Huntington Beach Bad Boy “taking one for the team” , It is likely that Ortiz will take a step down in competition (Stephan Bonnar is a likely candidate)

Vitor Belfort and Yoshihiro Akiyama both looked to get back on track in the night’s co-main event. People have been screaming “Vitor Belfort has his speed back!” but it’s not like it went anywhere. On the conference call I attended for Vitor last week, he told me he would win via first round stoppage, which is exactly what he did. Vitor is still a top level talent with some of the fastest hands in the game, and better yet, his mind is in the right place. I hate when he loses and people say he doesn’t have his head on straight. He didn’t have his head on straight because Anderson Silva kicked it in the twelfth row, and was the better man. However, Vitor showed why he is an elite competitor, and likely sent the Japanese superstar Akiyama packing. How fun would a Vitor Belfort vs. Chris Leben matchup be at this point? Belfort went on record stating he’d like the winner of Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami, but Dana White didn’t make a statement.

Thank god I don’t have any photographs to show you of Dennis Hallman’s shorts. For pro wrestling fans, you wouldn’t think much of it, but imagine trunks….. just trunks. No boots, no elbow pads, no wrist tape, no knee pads…..just trunks. That unfortunately was the story of Hallman’s bout against Brian Ebersole. Both men have over 50 pro fights, and had an exciting bout, but looking at Hallman’s trunks was very difficult. If he would have thrown on a triangle, I think Ebersole would have tapped out immediately just to save face (gross pun). After Ebersole won via TKO, he told Joe Rogan he wanted to star in an all UFC edition of the returning “Fear Factor” program on NBC. A likely idea for the first competition on that show would be a staring contest with Dennis Hallman’s terrible shorts.

Really. Ugh.

Crowd favorite Matt Hamill took on the 11-1 Alexander Gustafsson, which should have been on the pay-per-view card. Hamill has only lost to top level talent (I’m not including Bisping, whom he should have got the victory over). Gustafsson came into this fight with a lot of hype, and didn’t deliver initially. All of his strikes were blocked by the experienced Matt Hamill, until the second round, three minutes in, when he landed shots on Hamill against the cage, and worked his way to mount (one of Hamill’s glaring weaknesses) and took home a TKO victory. At 24 years of age, Gustafsson has time on his side, and is 4-1 in the UFC. With several Light Heavyweights aging or leaving the division, he is a major prospect in the division.

The future of the Featherweight division was on display, as undefeated Chad Mendes took on Jiu Jitsu master Rani Yahya on the Spike TV preliminary card. Yahya showed his improved, yet awkward striking technique, and initially didn’t push to take the fight to the ground. Mendes had Yahya on the ground within the first round with a takedown, but wisely didn’t chase Yahya to the ground. Mendes later made an attempt to work his ground game, landing a couple of takedowns, with a hard elbow shot on each, before returning to his feet. Yahya’s basic footwork and posture for his stand up looks as if it needs some refining, as he was leaving his jaw wide open, turning his back, and throwing punches from his hips at times. In the end, Mendes avoided the slick submission skills of Yahya and remained undefeated, moving to 11-0 with a unanimous decision victory.

Former WEC Champion Mike Brown avoided the chopping block by wrestling his way to a victory over TUF alumni Nam Phan. Brown dominated early with vicious ground and pound, but as the fight wore on, he looked like he was playing safe, to ensure a victory. When you’re a 35 year old MMA fighter coming off of two straight losses, your priorities change.

When all is said and done, years from now, people will look back at the card and see Rashad Evans, Tito Ortiz, Vitor Belfort, Chad Mendes, Gustafsson, and Rory Macdonald and see it as a stacked card. It may not have seemed that way now, but get at me in two years !

Until next time, follow me on TWITTER! I’ve been followed (and unfollowed) by Spencer Pratt….so why shouldn’t you!?

An injury riddled UFC 133 looked to still warrant it’s worth in cost Saturday Night, and in the end it succeeded, providing thrills, and great back and forth action.

The night’s main event was a rematch of one of the most infamous Draws in MMA history, as former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions squared off. Tito Ortiz (injury replacement for Phil Davis, who was an injury replacement for Jon Jones) only a month ago faced possible unemployment, and a couple of weeks later, was announced as the main event opponent for Rashad Evans. Ortiz and Evans have at times, been the most hated fighters in the sport, as both are outspoken…as displayed in the pre fight hype videos, where Tito lightened the mood with a “thats what she said” joke.

I’m sure the final comment endeared Tito to the Male 18-34 demographic (it worked on me), but could he defeat a fighter the caliber of Evans? Rashad, looking unimpressive against Rampage Jackson (wrestlebanging his way to victory), has had a 14 month layoff due to waiting around for his title shot, injuries, and other factors. For Ortiz, this was a great chance to prove himself as a contender once again. Rashad promised to finish Tito Ortiz (but he also sent Rampage Jackson a snuggie, saying he would “put him to sleep”, I’m still waiting on my snuggie, because that fight was a snoozefest).

No snoozefest in this main event however, as it was a back and forth war, with shots traded on the feet, and takedowns traded as well. Rashad showed off his superior speed by unleashing a sick combo on Tito against the cage, much of which was blocked by the veteran Ortiz. Tito secured a takedown early in the first round, and almost pulled off a guillotine choke in the second, only to have Evans pass his half-guard. Evans finally managed go get Tito down however, and blasted him with knees, punches and elbows to gain a TKO victory. Thankfully Tito fought his best fight since his 2008 title victory over Forrest Griffin, going aggressively, and not relying completely on his wrestling.

Rashad will now face the winner of Jon Jones/Rampage Jackson, which occurs next month. Tito Ortiz on the other hand, isn’t in danger of being cut from the UFC, as he took this fight on short notice, and earned a nice six-figure salary on top of that. After his win against Bader, and The Huntington Beach Bad Boy “taking one for the team” , It is likely that Ortiz will take a step down in competition (Stephan Bonnar is a likely candidate)

Vitor Belfort and Yoshihiro Akiyama both looked to get back on track in the night’s co-main event. People have been screaming “Vitor Belfort has his speed back!” but it’s not like it went anywhere. On the conference call I attended for Vitor last week, he told me he would win via first round stoppage, which is exactly what he did. Vitor is still a top level talent with some of the fastest hands in the game, and better yet, his mind is in the right place. I hate when he loses and people say he doesn’t have his head on straight. He didn’t have his head on straight because Anderson Silva kicked it in the twelfth row, and was the better man. However, Vitor showed why he is an elite competitor, and likely sent the Japanese superstar Akiyama packing. How fun would a Vitor Belfort vs. Chris Leben matchup be at this point? Belfort went on record stating he’d like the winner of Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami, but Dana White didn’t make a statement.

Thank god I don’t have any photographs to show you of Dennis Hallman’s shorts. For pro wrestling fans, you wouldn’t think much of it, but imagine trunks….. just trunks. No boots, no elbow pads, no wrist tape, no knee pads…..just trunks. That unfortunately was the story of Hallman’s bout against Brian Ebersole. Both men have over 50 pro fights, and had an exciting bout, but looking at Hallman’s trunks was very difficult. If he would have thrown on a triangle, I think Ebersole would have tapped out immediately just to save face (gross pun). After Ebersole won via TKO, he told Joe Rogan he wanted to star in an all UFC edition of the returning “Fear Factor” program on NBC. A likely idea for the first competition on that show would be a staring contest with Dennis Hallman’s terrible shorts.

Really. Ugh.

Crowd favorite Matt Hamill took on the 11-1 Alexander Gustafsson, which should have been on the pay-per-view card. Hamill has only lost to top level talent (I’m not including Bisping, whom he should have got the victory over). Gustafsson came into this fight with a lot of hype, and didn’t deliver initially. All of his strikes were blocked by the experienced Matt Hamill, until the second round, three minutes in, when he landed shots on Hamill against the cage, and worked his way to mount (one of Hamill’s glaring weaknesses) and took home a TKO victory. At 24 years of age, Gustafsson has time on his side, and is 4-1 in the UFC. With several Light Heavyweights aging or leaving the division, he is a major prospect in the division.

The future of the Featherweight division was on display, as undefeated Chad Mendes took on Jiu Jitsu master Rani Yahya on the Spike TV preliminary card. Yahya showed his improved, yet awkward striking technique, and initially didn’t push to take the fight to the ground. Mendes had Yahya on the ground within the first round with a takedown, but wisely didn’t chase Yahya to the ground. Mendes later made an attempt to work his ground game, landing a couple of takedowns, with a hard elbow shot on each, before returning to his feet. Yahya’s basic footwork and posture for his stand up looks as if it needs some refining, as he was leaving his jaw wide open, turning his back, and throwing punches from his hips at times. In the end, Mendes avoided the slick submission skills of Yahya and remained undefeated, moving to 11-0 with a unanimous decision victory.

Former WEC Champion Mike Brown avoided the chopping block by wrestling his way to a victory over TUF alumni Nam Phan. Brown dominated early with vicious ground and pound, but as the fight wore on, he looked like he was playing safe, to ensure a victory. When you’re a 35 year old MMA fighter coming off of two straight losses, your priorities change.

When all is said and done, years from now, people will look back at the card and see Rashad Evans, Tito Ortiz, Vitor Belfort, Chad Mendes, Gustafsson, and Rory Macdonald and see it as a stacked card. It may not have seemed that way now, but get at me in two years !

Until next time, follow me on TWITTER! I’ve been followed (and unfollowed) by Spencer Pratt….so why shouldn’t you!?